WIDA announces 2024-2025 WIDA Fellows cohort

Returning WIDA Fellow Instructional Experts

Elizabeth Fernandes

Elizabeth is an English language development teacher at Global Learning Charter School in New Bedford, Massachusetts. She is an experienced educator committed to working towards equity and academic excellence for all students; not only through her career, but also in her community. Elizabeth is currently in her thirteenth year of teaching. Although her journey as an educator started with teaching kindergarten, she has had the opportunity to teach and mentor students in all K-12 grade levels. In addition to teaching, she serves as the bridge coordinator of the Upward Bound Program through the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth which provides support and opportunities for low-income and potential first-generation college students and veterans to prepare for and succeed in higher education. In her role as bridge coordinator, she recruits and aids students in grades 8 through 12 in the college admissions process. As a first-generation Cape Verdean-American and first-generation college graduate, she has a passion for social justice and advocating for immigrants, especially multilingual students and youth who are economically underrepresented. Elizabeth strives to be a community advocate that empowers and brings together students, families and the school community.

Terri Geffert

Terri teaches multilingual learners in grades K–3 for the Essex Westford School District. She has taught K-6 English learners in Vermont, Massachusetts and New York since 2008. Prior to this work, she taught for 13 years as a Spanish immersion elementary teacher in Minnesota. She is also a certified reading specialist, and her professional interests include the integration of science of reading research with multilingual literacy instruction, co-teaching and equity. Terri holds a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Illinois and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish, English and Hispanic studies from Saint Olaf College.

Whitney Hodges

Whitney is from Morristown, Tennessee. She has an Ed.S. from Lincoln Memorial University, where she is also pursuing her doctorate. Whitney already has a master’s in TESL and a bachelor’s in grades 7-12 mathematics and grades 4-8 education from Carson-Newman University. She is an ML teacher, learning leader, Solution Tree guiding coalition leader and after-school program director in Hamblen County. She was the 2015-2016 Tennessee East Core Teacher of the Year. She is also a Tennessee Migrant Education Program lead teacher, global education team member and adjunct instructor at Walters State Community College. She has taught mathematics, ESL in Central America and Europe and has been a K-12 district instructional coach. She has served as a WIDA ACCESS theme generator and content reviewer.

Samantha Noel

Working with multilingual students over the last eight years has ignited quite a passion for Sam. She currently teaches English learners in a middle school in north St. Louis County. Her journey to this career path began as a third-year teacher being faced with a classroom in which nearly half of the students spoke languages besides English. These early experiences are what drive her to support and advocate for her students and their families each day. Through collaboration, professional development and effective communication, Sam aims to make sure students are supported across content and that each educational stakeholder is equipped for the role they play. Outside of teaching, she enjoys attending church, traveling, developing her Spanish skills, reading, sports and finding as many opportunities as possible to see the people she loves.

Karely Spence-Osorio

Karely began her teaching career in the Washington, D.C. Public Schools. While her master’s degree is in teaching secondary English, Karely — a child of immigrants — took a special interest in her newcomer students who were in her mainstream 8th grade ELA class. In the years to follow, Karely became a newcomer ELA teacher, first for 6th grade then for all grades. In 2022, she moved to North Carolina and began teaching ESL in the Durham Public Schools. At Brogden Middle School, she works with a diverse population of multilingual learners, including SLIFE, intermediates and long-termers. In her teaching, Karely strives to inculcate not only the importance of being able to use academic language in English, but also the value of communicating in one’s home language(s).

New WIDA Fellow Instructional Experts

Yulia Akulshina-Prys

Bilingual and multilingual learning have been integral parts of Yulia's life for the last 30 years. Born and raised in Ukraine with Russian as her primary language and Ukrainian as her secondary language, she began learning English at age 10. As a student, Yulia also studied German, Spanish and Italian, gaining insight into the challenges and rewards of acquiring new languages and cultures. Since 2016, Yulia has been an English language development (ELD) teacher in the U.S., working primarily with students from Yemen, Bangladesh and Ukraine. Her schools have a student body composed of about 95% multilingual learners. Her experience has shown that it is possible to teach English to students who do not share a primary language with her. Yulia collaborates closely with content teachers through the WIDA ELD Standards Framework and has developed science units integrating both content and language. Yulia holds a bachelor's degree in English language and literature and a master's degree in English and German language and literatures from Donetsk National University, Ukraine. She also earned an education specialist degree in reading with a concentration in ELD from Wayne State University. In 2019, Yulia received the Outstanding Educator of the Year Award from Saginaw Valley State University. Currently, she is a K-8 ELD specialist and school coordinator with Hamtramck Public Schools in Michigan.

Mónica Girard Farris

Mónica is an EL teacher at Florence City Schools and an adjunct professor at the University of West Alabama. She has taught K-12 multilingual learners for the past 16 years and is National Board Certified. The daughter of a Swiss archeologist, she grew up in Guatemala and attended a bilingual Spanish and French school. At 17 she came to the U.S. as an English learner. This background strategically positions her to understand her multilingual students and build strong ties with the families and communities. She is passionate about empowering classroom teachers and developing co-teaching partnerships that foster cultural responsiveness. Mónica recently earned her doctoral degree in educational leadership from Liberty University. Her life is a testimony of the doors and opportunities that education can open for a minority student.

Shane Brian Koch

Shane is a bilingual teacher and interventionist with Chicago Public Schools. He holds a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and an M.A. in ESL from Hamline University. Shane spent five years teaching in international schools in Bahrain, Cambodia, and Malaysia before returning to Chicago in 2021. He has taught various elementary grades as both a general and bilingual education teacher, always working with English learners. This year, Shane will transition to a bilingual interventionist role, supporting students and collaborating with teachers on strategies for English language learners. He is also beginning his Ed.D. journey at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Natalie Lau-Chien  

Natalie is a K-12 ESOL teacher across five schools in Amherst and Mont Vernon, New Hampshire.  Raised in Hawai'i, she earned a B.A. in Race & Ethnic Studies focusing on multicultural education. After earning her M.Ed., she began teaching as a social studies teacher passionate about social justice. Later, as a sheltered English immersion teacher, she found an even greater joy in working with MLs, as a bridge and advocate that helps her students adapt to a new country, culture and language, while also encouraging them to maintain their native languages, cultures and customs. Her experience also includes teaching preschoolers/adults in ESL/Mandarin and facilitating professional development in sheltering instruction for MLs.

Feras Majeed

Feras brings more than 11 years of experience in education, working with students from elementary to high school with diverse language and learning needs. He holds a B.A. in English from Southern Connecticut State University and an M.A. in Teaching from Sacred Heart University. He is currently pursuing an M.S. in Educational Leadership, which he expects to complete by March 2025. Feras began his career teaching English language arts and reading intervention in underserved areas of New Haven, CT. Feras was born in the U.S., but soon moved to Palestine and completed his primary school years there. When returning to the U.S. at the age of 10, he found it to be difficult and emotionally draining. Throughout his teaching career, he has held onto this memory and after 6 years of teaching, pursued his EL teaching certification in hopes of supporting students just like him. Currently, he is an EL English teacher and EL facilitator in a high school in Illinois. Feras’ personal experience as a young student in US schools drives his commitment in making a positive impact in his students' lives every day.

Susan Rosato

Susan has been a multilingual learner teacher for 25 years. She began her career in Holyoke, Massachusetts, in a bilingual classroom and currently teaches at Colchester High School in Vermont. She received a B.A. in Secondary Education from the State University of New York at Cortland and her M.S. in Teaching English as a Second Language from the State University of New York at Albany. Rosato designed a newcomer and ML course and a 6-12 summer program, which focuses on building community. Her students are leaders who share their stories with the school board and successfully petitioned to grow the MLL faculty. Susan believes that equity of opportunity is how public education changes lives. She supports her colleagues by teaching a three-credit course through Saint Michael’s College on best practices for our linguistically gifted students. She received the 2024 Angelo J. Dorta Teaching Excellence Award and is the 2021 Vermont State Teacher of the Year.

Lanísia Scarbrough

Multilingualism has been at the core of Lanísia’s educational and professional experiences. Her first educational experience in Cape Verde, where she was born and raised, encompassed speaking Cape Verdean Creole at home, while learning in Portuguese at elementary and secondary levels. After finishing high school, she obtained a bachelor's degree in English studies which allowed her to teach English as a foreign language to high school students. In addition, she worked as a Portuguese-English translator for an international non-profit organization. She immigrated to the U.S. in 2010 and soon began teaching English to both adult refugees and immigrants from various parts of the world, which helped her achieve an elevated level of multicultural competence. Lanísia’s experiences teaching abroad, along with the challenges of moving to a new country, motivated her to obtain a master's degree in English as a new language. She has developed a great deal of empathy and hopes to help immigrant families overcome the challenges they face upon moving to this country. She has been teaching in both pull-out and co-teaching settings and is committed to providing a safe place for her students to feel welcome and valued.

Pushpanjali Sengupta

Pushpanjali is a multilingual learner (MLL) facilitator and heritage language coach in an elementary school in Bellevue, Washington. She has also taught K-6 in mainstream classrooms. Pushpanjali has a master’s in teaching and is MLL endorsed. She is a National Board Certified Teacher in English as a new language. As an MLL and an immigrant, she firmly believes in creating collaborative and authentic learning opportunities for her students and their families who come in with various linguistic, cultural and educational assets. She is an ardent advocate for her students and has worked in various leadership roles to create tools that continue to help other educators in supporting students. Pushpanjali has also collaborated with authors in the field to share her work. She loves spending time with her family and learning new skills.

Betsy Vander Heiden

With a passion for fostering meaningful relationships, Betsy is dedicated to empowering English learners and their families. During her 22-year teaching career, Betsy has delivered professional development and accepted leadership roles which have strengthened her support of staff to work with ELs. Betsy’s education includes a B.A. in Education (Spanish major with a TESOL minor) from UW-Eau Claire, an M.A. in Education (Professional Development) from Alverno College, and additional licensure in bilingual-bicultural education. In 2023, Betsy proudly achieved her National Board Certification in English as a new language. Currently, Betsy is an elementary EL teacher in the Elmbrook School District in Brookfield, Wisconsin. In her free time, Betsy enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, baking and traveling.

Beverlyn Villanueva

Beverlyn currently serves as an ESL teacher at Cumberland County Schools in North Carolina. Recognized for innovative teaching and student engagement initiatives, she has won multiple Carolina Canvas Awards and presented at the 2023 SETESOL Conference. Her proposal has been accepted for the 2024 WIDA Annual Conference, where she will present in both virtual and in-person sessions. She earned her Ed.D. in Educational Management and M.A. in Education with a major in English from President Ramon Magsaysay State University, Philippines, and a bachelor's degree in secondary education (major in English) with honors from the University of Baguio, Philippines. With 14 years of experience, she empowers multilingual learners and promotes bilingual education. Her past roles in the Philippines include head teacher positions, leading academic programs and student initiatives. Outside of work, she enjoys music, arts, video editing and digital layout. Beverlyn has risen to the challenge of providing her students with an exceptional and holistic education. Her passion for academic excellence, coupled with her respect for learner differences, has inspired teachers across the country.

Tara Willging

Tara has been a practicing ESL teacher for just under 10 years in Virginia public schools. She has embraced leadership roles at the elementary level, engaging with families and collaborating with teachers utilizing a translanguaging approach. Tara is also a doctoral student and adjunct professor in the School of Education at the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. As a graduate assistant to Luciana de Oliveira, she has been a member of the Multilingual Learners in Schools research group at VCU since 2021; contributing to articles, book chapters, presentations and workshops. Her research interests expand from her experience in public schools with multilingual learners to include language and language use in schools through an asset-based, critical lens.

Returning WIDA Fellow Educational Leaders

Sheila Boardman

Sheila is the multilingual learner coordinator and specialist at Gibraltar School District in Michigan. She is a certified SIOP trainer and is passionate about providing multilingual students equal access to the core curriculum. Sheila facilitates professional development workshops for EL Education, a national nonprofit partnering with K-12 educators in diverse school districts. She is a past recipient of the WritEL grant and holds a master’s degree in TESOL from Eastern Michigan University. Prior to that she earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Along with her teaching certifications in ESL, ELA, speech and journalism, Sheila has over ten years of classroom experience. She is a founding member of the Downriver Multilingual Network and leads regional meetings to connect advocates and improve educational opportunities.

Antonella D’Eramo

Antonella is the curriculum and instruction specialist in the Multilingual Learner Education Department in Somerville, Massachusetts. Her experience includes elementary sheltered English immersion teacher, dual language classroom and ESL teacher and middle school newcomer ESL teacher. She has developed expertise in embedding language and literacy development in content instruction, co-teaching, social emotional learning and classroom discourse. Antonella supports multilingual learners and their teachers through coaching, professional development and curriculum collaboration.  A current focus is strengthening equitable practice for SLIFE and newcomer students. Additionally, Antonella is a part-time instructor at Boston University and Lesley University.

Erica Espinosa

Erica was born and raised in Southern California. Her personal bilingual and bicultural experiences propelled her to obtain her elementary education degree at the University of Northern Colorado along with TESOL and Spanish endorsements. Later, she earned her master’s in educational equity in the areas of special education and culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) education. Erica maintains a student and human-centered perspective, prioritizing equitable learning experiences and inclusion for all students. She is committed to empowering families in both educational and community settings. In her current role, Erica supports her school community as an instructional coach, CLD coordinator, CLD interventionist and equity administrator. Prior to that, she taught 4th and 5th grade for five years at a dual language, international baccalaureate school.

Sylvia Fagin

Sylvia began her education career as an HIV/AIDS educator in rural central Pennsylvania. She then served in the Peace Corps in Senegal training community health educators, and led groups of teenagers on bilingual community service trips in Québec with Global Works. She received her M.A. in TESOL from the School for International Training in 2005. For 20 years, Sylvia has taught multilingual learners in grades K-12 in Montpelier, Vermont. Sylvia is a 2012 graduate of the Vermont Leadership Institute and was a National Endowment for the Humanities summer scholar in 2019, studying lived religion. Sylvia strives to hold the strength, dignity and agency of students and families first and foremost in her professional practice.

Cheyen Herseth

Raised in rural eastern Washington, Cheyen earned her education degree from Washington State University, then moved to the Puget Sound Region to start her teaching career. While in a classroom with fourteen spoken languages during her early teaching career, she discovered that a focus on language enhances success for all students. This led to her interest in language acquisition and curricula creation. To further her expertise in these areas, Cheyen earned an M.S. in Curriculum and Instruction and an M.A. in English Language Learning. In her current role as an ML specialist TOSA, Cheyen assists educators with integrating language acquisition into all content areas. She is dedicated to creating and delivering professional development for district teachers around the WIDA frameworks as well as raising awareness around the critical data process to ensure students receive support in their general education classrooms. Cheyen advocates that all learners are language learners and all teachers are language teachers. Outside of work, she enjoys exploring the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two young children.

Corinne Larsen

Corinne is a success coach in Kent, Washington, supporting teachers and staff so they implement Tier I instruction effectively. She strives to build capacity, believing in empowering educators to become leaders in their classrooms and school community. She’s an advocate for multilingual students, fostering an asset-based mindset and inclusivity. She has previously worked as a multilingual learner facilitator and as a classroom teacher in Arizona, Washington, and South Africa. She received her master’s degree in elementary education from the University of Washington and has her National Board Certificate in English as new language.  Her goal is to see educators and students flourish in an environment where everyone feels valued, inspired and empowered.

Madison Leech

Madison is assistant principal at Barclay Elementary School in Central Bucks School District in Pennsylvania. Prior to this position, she was an ELD teacher in Central Bucks and in Asheville, North Carolina. For the past few years, Madison has been collaborating with WIDA’s Advancing ALTELLA Project to create more inclusive programming and supports for multilingual learners with significant cognitive disabilities. Her recent collaboration with the ALTELLA team, applying the framework, includes a toolkit for educational teams to support MLs. The most important aspects of leadership and teaching for Madison are student and family advocacy, viewing multilingualism as an asset and creating a collaborative educational environment that is inclusive and empowers all educators and learners. When not at work, you can find her traveling, playing music and most likely drinking coffee.

Janette Manzano Catahan

Janette is a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) for English as new language. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in TESOL education and special education at Brigham Young University-Hawaii and received her master’s degree in TESOL at Hawaii Pacific University. Janette currently teaches multilingual learners at Four Heroes Elementary School under the Clover Park School District in Washington and is the team lead of the multilingual learner department at her school. She is also a trained mentor to new educators through WEA (Washington Education Association) and OSPI’s (Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction) Nakia Academy. Born and raised in the Philippines, then moving to the U.S., she understands the challenges that English language learners face. As a multilingual learner herself, she has fostered her deep appreciation for the power of language and culture in shaping one’s identity and learning experiences. Janette has a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion in education, advocating for multilingual learners and their families, and empowering fellow educators. In addition to her role as an educator, Janette enjoys singing, embarking on adventures, and exploring new places with her family.

Lindsey Simmons

Lindsey is a National Board Certified teacher of English as a new language and holds a master’s degree in TESOL from the University of South Alabama. She has served as Saraland City School’s district ESL resource teacher for 11 years, providing English language development services to students in grades K-12 with a focus on collaborative goal-setting with continuous feedback, building relationships with multilingual families and developing best practices with classroom teachers. As an advocate for multilingual learners, she values creating opportunities for them to develop leadership in the district and community through student-driven projects and extracurricular programs such as a secondary multicultural and elementary language clubs that promote multiculturalism and celebrate the beauty and value of all languages.

Daisy Skelly

Daisy has more than 20 years working in all levels of education, from early childhood to higher education. Currently, she is an English language development specialist with Parkway School District and adjunct instructor for Lindenwood University, both in Missouri. As a lifelong learner, Daisy holds B.S. degrees in Elementary and Middle School Education from the University of Central Missouri, and an M.A. degree with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education from Lindenwood University. In 2019, Daisy completed her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership with an emphasis in andragogy at Lindenwood University. Outside of school, she enjoys spending time with her husband and adult children. While Daisy is not multilingual, she believes in the importance and power of multilingualism and advocates for her students and their families to share their language gifts with the local community and the world.

New WIDA Fellow Educational Leaders

Komi Agoda-Koussema  

Komi is a lifelong educator. After retiring from the New York City Public Schools System as an ELL educator for over 30 years, he currently teaches ELLs from grades 9 through 12 for the Elizabeth Public Schools in New Jersey. He also works as an adjunct professor in the Department of Culture and Languages at Middlesex College in New Jersey. He was also an adjunct professor at Touro University for over a decade, where he trained and mentored teachers in second language instruction and methodology. Today, Komi's mission is to motivate and encourage young people in the community to be good role models for change. In 2022, he established the Agoda Civics Institute, a non-profit organization to serve the community in civics, second language learning for new immigrants and community empowerment. He is the chair of the African Political Action Committee (APAC), a first of its kind in the tri-state area. His bold and progressive leadership is aimed at empowering both young adults and older folks alike. In his free time, he loves to travel around the world with his wife and business partner to discover new cultures and build relationships with people around the world.

Sarah Carr

Sarah leads the LIEP team at Tucker High School — the most diverse school in Virginia. She has worked with international students since 2008 and has taught ESL at Tucker since 2016. She has lived in Arizona, Virginia, and Mexico, and is part of a multilingual family; which lends personal experience to her practice. She holds a bachelor’s in anthropology, a master of education in TESOL, and a post-graduate certificate in administration and supervision. Leading with culturally responsive, trauma-informed practices, Sarah values creating safe learning spaces, student empowerment and community relationships. Outside of school, you’ll find her dancing or working on her current project — a recorded oral history of multilingualism in Virginia.

Mabel Lamprea

Mabel is a language educator from Colombia who migrated to the U.S. in 2005. She is a newcomer teacher at Sterling Middle School in Loudoun County, Virginia. Prior to that, she worked in Prince William, Virginia and in North Carolina. She also had nine years of teaching and leadership experience in primary, secondary and higher education in Colombia. Mabel holds a bachelor’s and a specialization in language teaching from Universidad Industrial de Santander, a master’s in educational leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University and a doctorate in curriculum and instruction from Gardner-Webb University. Her research focuses on English learners’ academic resilience and emotion education, educational equity and professional learning.

Katherine Lobo

Kathy holds a B.F.A. from the Philadelphia College of Art and an M.A. from Norwich University. She has graduate certificates in ESL/ESOL teaching and teaching bilingual English learners with disabilities. Dedicated to language learning in all forms, Kathy has taught multilingual learners from grades 5-12 in various settings; including public, private and international schools. Her teaching journey began at Seisen International School in Tokyo, Japan, where she taught 6th grade in a diverse school with students representing 62 nationalities. Later, she served as an ESOL/ESL teacher in Australia before returning to the U.S. Currently, she teaches ESL at Brown Middle School in Newton, Massachusetts. Beyond her 25 years of teaching experience, Kathy has led workshops, facilitated professional development and taught adults at colleges in the Boston area. She has also contributed at the state level, serving on the boards of the Massachusetts Association of Bilingual Educators (MABE) and MATSOL, the Massachusetts affiliate of TESOL. Globally, Kathy has been actively involved with TESOL International since 2008, including a term on its board of directors. She advocates passionately for language learning and promotes the Seal of Biliteracy program at Newton Public Schools, celebrating students' linguistic achievements since 2016.

Bryan Lynip 

Bryan comes back to teaching English as a second language after many years in school administration. He retired from school administration in North Carolina and is now working at an Elementary School in Columbia, South Carolina. He began his career teaching ESOL in Stanly County, North Carolina, where he got to work with mostly Hmong, Mexican and Latin American families. Because the Hmong people were particularly unknown to the schools and community, Bryan ended up doing in-service training around the county. He enjoyed teaching teachers and pursued a career in administration. Now, 25 years later, he has come back to ESOL. He is grateful to have an opportunity to work with WIDA as a fellow.

Brenda McMurtrey

Brenda earned a special education bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in English as a second language from Western Governors University in Salt Lake City, Utah. Brenda ran an elementary alternative communication program before working at a youth crisis center. She currently works in a public high school. Her most recent accomplishments are completing the School Leadership Program at Southern Utah University. She also received the Next Generation Personal Finance Distinguished Educator Award. Brenda enjoys professional development that enhances her ability to support the needs of her students. She is an advocate for multilingual learners in her school, district and community. She puts a special emphasis on life-long learning. Annual visits to college campuses as well as field trips in the community have helped to motivate students. Brenda encourages teachers and students to communicate effectively so everyone can have happy and successful school experiences.

Molly Naylor

Molly is a multilingual education (MLE) coordinator and teacher at DSST Public Schools in Colorado, but has also spent time in her professional career in Minnesota. With a B.A. in Linguistics, complemented by a master’s in ESL from Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, she has focused on the integral pillars of a strong language program that will celebrate the linguistic and cultural diversity within school buildings so that multilingual students and families are empowered to own their education. Entering her eighth year as an ELD teacher and ninth year in education, Molly has extensive experience working with students ranging from Pre-K to adult language learners, with a primary focus on high school students. At her current school, a founding institution in Aurora, Colorado, Molly has collaborated with her team to build the language program from the ground up. Due to this collaboration and team dedication to growth for their multilingual learners, the school has seen remarkable growth, notably receiving an award for the highest growth on ACCESS for ELLs within the entire district in its inaugural year. Molly's educational philosophy centers on building strong relationships with students and families, believing this to be the cornerstone of academic success. Her vision is to help students and families define or redefine what being multilingual means, fostering increased efficacy that allows them to fully engage in their classes. Through this approach, Molly aims to create an asset-based environment where language skills and habits can flourish.

Jessica Pulzetti

Jess teaches multilingual learners at Ottoson Middle School in Arlington, Massachusetts. She began her career as a Latin teacher, and shifted to MLL after she volunteered teaching ESL at her church and loved it! A curriculum developer for more than 15 years, she has written for Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia, USA TODAY, Arlington Public Schools and Boston Public Schools. She has developed MLL units in the subject areas of ELA, science, math and social studies, and happily shares her units statewide through her involvement in MATSOL. In 2020, she founded the MATSOL ESL Unit Developers Special Interest Group, which has provided training and networking for curriculum developers throughout Massachusetts and recently launched an online unit sharing platform. In 2021, she earned a master’s certificate in teacher leadership from Salem State University. In Arlington, she also serves on the instructional leadership team and coaches cross country.

Tanya D. Scott

Tanya currently serves as the director of English learner and Pre-K programming for the Carson City School District in Nevada. Tanya entered the field having attended a performing arts magnet school before earning a B.A. in Theater from U.C.L.A. Committed to being a lifelong-learner, she went on to earn an M.A. in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) followed by a Ph.D. in Literacy Studies from the University of Nevada, Reno. The greatest joy Tanya finds in her present position is connecting with multilingual learners and their families in novel ways that foster community partnerships through the arts. It is her hope that this endeavor will inspire MLs, propelling them toward further enrichment opportunities, just as her own early exposure to the arts served as the springboard for her rewarding career as an educator.

Aaron Taylor

Aaron is a native New Mexican and currently works as ELD coordinator at Explore Academy Charter School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He has taught a variety of classes for English learners for the past 20 years for middle and high school students. In 2014, he earned a doctorate in Spanish literature from UNM, all while continuing to support English learners in various roles as bilingual coordinator. In 2017, he developed a class for New Mexico Highlands University called Teaching Reading and the Language Arts in the Bilingual Classroom. Aaron’s current role includes teaching an English language development course, coordinating testing for English learners, and training Explore Academy staff on best practices.